Bridger-Teton closes North Piney Bridge to some vehicles
by Bridger-Teton National Forest
October 4, 2012
The Bridger-Teton National Forest has restricted use of the North Piney Bridge to any vehicles greater than 66-inches wide as a result of an inspection earlier this month.
The bridge, which is located on National Forest Road 10046 across North Piney Creek roughly 25-miles northeast of Big Piney, Wyoming, was recently inspected by the Regional Bridge Engineer. The inspection results have led to the determination that the bridge must have a load capacity of less than 3 tons. Per Federal Regulations, the bridge is unsafe for vehicle travel and is now closed to that particular use of the bridge. "Forest users will still be able to cross the bridge on foot, horseback or by ATV or UTV," said Big Piney District Ranger Eric Winthers.
Forest employees will maintain a 66-inch opening on the upstream side of the bridge which will allow recreationist to continue using the travel way. Any visitors wanting to access the North Piney trailhead and Bare Pass area will still be able to do so if they approach the area from the north via the South Cottonwood/Bare Pass road.
Presently, there is no timeframe for when the bridge will be replaced with a newer, larger capacity structure.
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